Burglaries, and the perceived risk thereof, have continually increased, particularly in crowded urban areas. Thus, more and more businesses and homes are protected by alarm systems. Most alarm systems comprise an alarm control panel; a series of detectors, sensors and/or door/perimeter contacts; and a user-controlled keypad. An alarm control panel typically includes all the necessary wiring and processing capability to determine whether signal information received from the detectors, sensors, contacts, etc. is indicative of an intruder. In more modern systems, the alarm control panel also provides the means for securing the telephone line in the house and dialing out to a central monitoring station if the processed signals are indicative of an intruder. A central monitoring station will then typically call the owner of the premises and, unless a proper secret code is provided, dispatch the police. The initial telephone call to the owner is not required but is usually done to confirm that the signal indicative of an alarm condition is not, instead, a false alarm. In certain municipalities, signals from the control panel may be sent directly to the police department or other municipal branch.
In the past, the provided keypad was often utilized for both installation and operational programming functions, and to permit a user to arm or disarm the alarm system. However, the programming of an installed alarm system is increasingly conducted via downloading directly to the alarm control panel from a hand-held device or from a remote location using a telephone connection. Thus, the keypad has become little more than a complicated and expensive "ON/OFF" switch.
In conventional alarm systems, when a user is ready to exit the premises and desires the alarm system to be turned ON (i.e., armed), a unique user code will be punched into the keypad. Typically, a delay is set that allows sufficient time for the user to exit the premises through the access door without setting off a false alarm. Conversely, when entering the premises, the user again must punch in a preselected code, utilizing the keypad, to disarm the alarm system. Again, a delay time is typically provided. If a user forgets or incorrectly inputs the preselected code and the delay time expires, an alarm condition will be initiated. Typically, an alarm condition will result in both an audio indication (such as a buzzer) and notification (via the telephone lines) to a central monitoring station.
Conventional keypad security systems are viewed unfavorably by users for a multiplicity of reasons. First, users need to remember their specific code and keep it secret. In order to permit authorized visitors access for a limited period of time (such as a house guest), a home or business owner must provide the access code yet would later need to change it to maintain security. Additionally, users often experience anxiety with the delay time permitted to enter a proper authorization code when either entering or exiting the premises. Many users, particularly elderly users, often lack the manual dexterity or the ability to view the keypad required to properly enter a code which allows them to enter the pre-established code. All of these shortcomings result in unnecessary false alarms which occur during the simple process of entering or exiting the premises.
It seems almost obvious to note that a very large majority of business and residential consumers who are concerned enough about security issues to purchase an alarm system, also utilize a deadbolt lock assembly on their access doors. While an alarm system is an effective deterrent against burglaries and indicates when an unauthorized individual (e.g., an intruder) has entered the premises, a reliable deadbolt lock assembly can prevent break-ins in the first place. Thus, the prior art does show some examples of an alarm utilized in conjunction with a deadbolt.
Droz U.S. Pat. No. 4,370,644 utilizes a deadbolt as a cut-off switch. The system presumes that when the deadbolt is retracted and in its unlocked position, an alarm condition signal should never be issued. The main advantage of this system is that it permits a user to leave the alarm system ON (or never shut the system OFF) while in the protected premises for an extended period of time. Although this system, under such circumstances, would normally detect the presence of an individual inside the premises and thus "see" an alarm condition, since the retracted deadbolt functions as an open switch, no actual alarm condition signal would be issued. The Droz device, however, provides no means for arming the alarm system by utilizing the deadbolt or insuring that both the deadbolt is engaged and the alarm system is ON when the user leaves the premises. Instead, false alarms are simply somewhat minimized due to the fact that no alarm condition can be initiated if the deadbolt is retracted. Furthermore, a user is permitted to set the alarm system well prior to leaving the premises as long as the deadbolt is not engaged. However, if the user leaves the premises without engaging the deadbolt, no alarm condition can ever be issued--whether the alarm system is armed or not.
Nourmand U.S. Pat. No. 4,937,560 provides an electromechanical interlock device that prevents a deadbolt from being moved from an unlocked position to a locked position until the security system is armed. Conversely, the provided electromechanical interlock also prevents the deadbolt from being moved from the locked position to the unlocked position until the security system is disarmed. The main function of the Nourmand device is to prevent false alarms and is accomplished by not allowing the user to enter the premises (since the deadbolt remains engaged) until the alarm system is turned OFF. The deadbolt is not utilized in any manner to arm or disarm the alarm system; instead, the permissible functioning of the deadbolt is modified depending on whether the alarm system is ON or OFF. The Nourmand device is, in effect, a deadbolt control. A glaring problem with the Nourmand device is that it is not adaptable to a door which an authorized person uses to enter the premises when the alarm is armed. The Nourmand system absolutely prevents the building from being entered prior to the security system being disarmed. However, most conventional alarm systems provide means for disarming an alarm inside the premises by setting an appropriate delay time.
Fromberg U.S. Pat. No. 5,925,861 provides a security door lock which is capable of issuing an alarm signal when an unauthorized user attempts to open a secured door. A cylindrical magnet contained within the latch permits the generation of an information signal which indicates that an attempt to open the secured door has been made. While the Fromberg device provides a separate door latch alarm, it is unrelated to any process of arming or disarming a home or business alarm system.
It is therefore a primary object of the present invention to provide a new and improved security alarm system.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a new and improved security alarm system which is less expensive and cumbersome than alarm systems using a keypad.
It is yet a further object of the present invention to provide a new and improved security alarm system that can be armed and disarmed based on the position of a deadbolt.
It is yet still a further object of the present invention to provide a new and improved security alarm system that can be armed and disarmed based on the position of a deadbolt and wherein the deadbolt's position is accurately detected by means of a Reed switch, a microswitch, or other means.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a new and improved security alarm system that can distinguish whether an authorized user is locking the deadbolt when leaving the protected premises or is locking the deadbolt while an authorized person remains inside the protected premises.
It is still another object of the present invention to provide a new and improved security alarm system that can be easily deactivated during a false alarm.
It is yet a further object of the present invention to provide a new and improved security alarm system that can easily be deactivated by a standard telephone utilizing its keypad.
It is yet still another object of the present invention to provide a new and improved security alarm system that is totally programmable without the utilization of a keypad.
It is still another object of the present invention to provide a new and improved security alarm system which is armed and disarmed dependent upon the position of a deadbolt, and which is further tamper proof.
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a new and improved security alarm system that provides ease of installation.
It is still another object of the present invention to provide a new and improved security alarm system that can automatically determine whether to arm both perimeter and interior components when no authorized person remains in the protected premises or whether to arm only perimeter components when an authorized person remains in the premises.
Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the specification and the drawings.